Apps can engage kids in the study of math, but what are they really learning? EDC is interviewed about its work with Boston public television station WGBH and the Next Generation Preschool Math program to evaluate the effectiveness of several apps.

In his Curriculum Matters blog, reporter Erik Robelen talks to EDC’s Ruth Krumhansl about the launch of the new Oceans of Data Institute, as well as a number of other EDC efforts that are helping schools make use of big data in the classroom.

In a letter to the editor, EDC’s Ilene Kantrov discusses career academies and the Ford Next Generation Learning initiative as models for preparing young people for a range of postsecondary and career opportunities.

EDC is a partner in the launch of a new Center for Innovative Research in Cyberlearning (CIRCL), an initiative led by California-based SRI International in collaboration with NORC at the University of Chicago. The five-year, $4.5 million effort is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) Cyberlearning program.

EDC is cosponsoring the 9th annual Massachusetts STEM Summit for policymakers, educators, and business leaders to discuss education initiatives in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, and progress on implementation of the statewide STEM plan. The summit will be held October 18 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Middle and high school students performed better on science subject tests when their teachers had taken professional development in that same subject, according to a study conducted by EDC researchers published this month by the journal Kappan.

The City of Chicago has announced it will create five new “early college” STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) schools for grades 9–14, based on the model of Brooklyn’s Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH). EDC worked with the New York City Department of Education, IBM, and others to document the design and launch of P-Tech, as well as its first year in operation. EDC compiled lessons learned as the basis of the STEM Pathways to College and Careers School Guide—the IBM Playbook, which will be used to help guide Chicago in setting up the new schools.

EDC co-sponsored a special report on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in USA Today that appeared over New Year’s weekend. The report, prepared by Media Planet, was distributed in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, and Cleveland, reaching more than three million readers.

EDC’s Joyce Malyn-Smith discusses the role community colleges can have in improving the United States’ competitive edge in the global marketplace by training workers in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) skills.

EDC is cosponsoring the 2011 Massachusetts STEM Summit, a forum for policymakers, educators, and funders to set the course for future state education initiatives in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

Engaging the interest and passion of young people in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) is the goal of educators, researchers, and policymakers attending the eighth annual ITEST Summit, March 3–4, 2011 at the Westin Arlington Gateway in Arlington, Virginia.

EDC has received more than $5.6 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to conduct research and develop programs to boost the learning and teaching of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM).

This year’s ITEST Summit, STEM Career Development: Nurturing Interest, Persistence &STEM Self-Efficacy, will allow participants to share knowledge, best practices, and findings from the first six years of the National Science Foundation program Information Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers, or ITEST.